The healthy menu at MAD Greens at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is helping change the bad reputation of airport food.

MAD Greens offers healthy food options including salads, wraps, grain bowls, catering and a juice bar at locations across Colorado, Arizona, and Texas. MAD Greens was founded in 2004 in Centennial, Colorado by childhood friends and chefs, Marley Hodgson and Dan Long. They’re the ‘M’ and ‘D’ in MAD Greens.

I had a chance to speak with Peggy Littleton, Senior Lettuce Juggler (what a great title!) at MAD Greens to get more details about their healthy food offering.

PHOTO: MAD Greens

Healthy menu items from MAD Greens

MAD Greens serves a variety of fresh salads, healthy wraps, grain-based bowls and even child-friendly options such as a pita grilled cheese. MAD Greens’ website says its “goal is to make you feel as healthy as possible while traveling.”

Their Austin-Bergstrom International Airport spot is their first airport location. It’s also the only MAD Greens to offer a breakfast menu which “goes way beyond bagels and scones, with regionally-inspired breakfast tacos and bowls packed with bold flavors,” Peggy told us.

MAD Greens also offers a variety of detox juices. Peggy shared with us that they “make juices fresh each morning (and sometimes throughout the day, depending on demand) but bottle them to easily grab and go.”

MAD Greens fresh juice flavors

Green Detox: Kale, Cucumber, Celery, Ginger & MAD Spice The Green Detox is all things wonderful for your body…the base is kale and cucumber juice for a blast of vitamin A, protein, and calcium. Celery juice brings its anti-inflammatory and cleansing properties. Then ginger root juice plus MAD Spice is so good for your digestive system.

Wake Up: Carrot, Orange, Ginger, Apple & Lime This juice is a simple classic that’s a great place to start if you’re new or wary of juicing. Get comfortable with the traditional apple, carrot, and orange juices. It’s almost like the juice you had as a kid with just a healthy serving of lime and ginger root to amp it up just a bit.

Apple Greenie: Apple, Kale, Lime & Orange The Apple Greenie is a traditional juice with only four main ingredients. Each brings its own unique properties and together create a Vitamin A and calcium-packed treat for your body.

Beet It: Beet, Apple, Carrot & Lime We could go on and on about the healthful properties of beets: they stimulate your liver, reduce cholesterol, normalize blood pressure, improve eye health, even heal gout (please go to a doctor if you actually have gout). Plus, it tastes so good with the carrot and apple juice with a splash of lime.

Location and hours

You’ll find MAD Greens near Gate 16 at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. This healthy food spot is open daily from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m.

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